Hello,

An IPS officer and a Psychologist, both career choices are poles apart but somehow you can pursue them both but to do them at the same time, the government has made a law that no government servant can engage directly or indirectly in any trade or business, or take any other employment while in service. However, he may be allowed to associate with the charity work of NGOs and other organizations for the welfare of society.

So, if you are thinking of opening your own clinic or to work at any place while being an IPS, the answer is probably no. But if you want to just practice as a psychologist then you can work in an NGO or other social welfare organizations.

Now coming to how to become IPS officer and Psychologist,

1) IPS OFFICER

To become an IPS, you need to give the UPSC exam.

Eligibility for appearing for the IPS exam-

• A candidate must be a citizen of India

• The candidates must hold a degree from recognized university in any discipline. The candidates appearing for final degree exam can also apply for Civil Services Preliminary Examination. Candidates with an equivalent to a professional and technical degree that is recognized by the Government can also apply.

• The candidate must be between the age of 21-32 years (for the General category candidate) on August 1 of the year of examination.

For Other Backward Castes (OBC) the upper age limit is 35. For Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST), the limit is 37 years.

The upper age limit is relaxed for certain candidates who are backward with respect to other factors and physically handicapped (PH) people.

Physical Ability

• Height: Minimum height of 165 centimeters is necessary for male candidates while minimum height for ST/SC/OBC candidates is 160 centimeters.

• Chest and Eye Sight: For male candidates of all the categories, they must have the chest of 84 centimeters. Eyesight should be between 6/6 and 6/9 and candidates who have weak eyesight must at least have 6/12 and 6/9.

Written Examination

To become an IPS officer, the foremost level of this procedure is to qualify the Civil Services Examination (CSE). Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) organizes Civil Services exam every year which happens in 3 sessions, Preliminary, Mains, and Interview. So, candidates who aspire for this position, have to clear all the rounds of Civil Services exam.

(Psychology is also one of the optional subjects in Mains which you can opt for)

Every year, the selection process will begin in the month of June with preliminary and conclude in April. The final merit list for the CSE will be released in May.

After clearing prelims, mains and being selected in the interview, you will be provided 2-year training in the national institute. On completion of training, you finally become an IPS officer.

2) PSYCHOLOGIST

With just your Bachelors degree in psychology, you can work as a career counselor or as child caretaker but to become an expert psychologist (such as clinical psychologist, research psychologist, etc.), you need to you will need to cover up the entire degree level, i.e. Bachelor in Psychology, post-graduation degree and the Ph.D. degree. You can opt for following courses in the psychology field-

Bachelors Courses (Three Year duration):

• B. Sc in Psychology

• BA (Hons) in Psychology

• Bachelor of Arts in Psychology

Master Courses (Two Year duration):

• Master of Arts in Psychology

• Master of Arts in Applied Psychology

• Master of Arts in Counselling Psychology

• M. Sc in Psychology

Doctoral Courses:

• Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology

• M.Phil. in Psychology

I hope this helps. If you have any other doubt or query, feel free to ask.

All the best!